"The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity." -Dorothy Parker

Climate change: it has has been all over the news, especially recently with the Paris Climate Change Conference underway.

I just recently had a client of mine ask me my thoughts on climate change because he was unsure that it is as big of a deal as the media is making it seem. I could understand where he was coming from. One of the biggest issues with climate change is that it is obscured by lobbyists, politicians, private corporations, numerous jurisdictions all pushing through their own agendas, making it difficult for others outside that group (i.e., your average citizen) to understand what exactly climate changeis and why we should even care.

The first big problem associated with climate change is jargon. I love this article by the BBC because they actually address the jargon issue. Anything that is too heavy in jargon (and that is pretty much all of science) quickly alienates people because they don’t speak “science language”. I am going to address some of the terms to help you through the climate change jargon mess, but also check out the BBC’s climate change glossary for a more complete list of definitions.

The first thing to understand is the greenhouse effect and greenhouse gases. The greenhouse effect is the insulation of the earth by certain gases in the atmosphere. The result is a rising of the earth’s temperature. In order to support life (as we know it) on Earth, we need some of the sun’s heat to stay on our planet and keep us warm. The atmosphere of the earth helps to trap some of the heat from the sun and keep us at an optimal temperature. The general principle of the greenhouse effect is sketched

Comparing the natural greenhouse effect to how human actions are influencing climate.

out in this diagram I grabbed from Live Science’s explanation of the greenhouse effect. The gases that trap the heat are carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), water (H2O). These are natural, but normally present in small amounts.

The atmosphere is comprised of approximately 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 1% argon, and the rest is every other gas. Carbon dioxide only makes up about 390 ppmv (parts per million). With this composition, everything remains in a nice balance and we live happily ever after.

The problem comes in when we (and yes I do mean human activity) start adding more water, carbon dioxide, and methane into the atmosphere. They start trapping more and more heat, which gradually warms the temperature of the earth, and puts us in the predicament we are currently facing.

Why is it now “climate change” and not “global warming”?

Excellent question. The reason that nomenclature was changed is because “climate change” is a much more accurate picture of what is truly happening world wide. Global warming, the gradual increase of the global temperature as a result of the greenhouse effect, is occurring; however, global warming implies that we should all be expecting balmier winters when the true picture of what is occurring means more erratic weather patterns around the world. Any physical scientist can tell you, temperature is extremely important to how chemistry behaves and even more so in the gas phase. The pressure and the volume of a gas is directly influenced by temperature. Since our atmosphere is made up of gases, changing the temperature means that the movement of the gases in the atmosphere is going change, drastically influencing weather patterns. That is why we are seeing more severe droughts in certain areas of the

The signs of climate change.

world, crazy colder winters in other parts. I grabbed this picture from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It shows some of the ways that we can tell climate change is occurring, and it is more than just a global increase in temperature. Actually, the EPA has a very nice explanation of some of the things going on in climate change.

The biggest issue of climate change is that the Earth exists in balance. Every ecosystem has evolved for specific conditions, conditions that include temperature and weather patterns. The plight of the polar bear and the melting ice caps has become the poster child of climate change, but here is a different example for you: coral reefs. I have had the pleasure of snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. That is an ecosystem that is absolutely breathtaking. From all of the different types of coral to the fish that call that coral home. Coral are actually animals. Their sexual reproduction involves the release of eggs and sperm simultaneously. This release depends on time of year, water temperature, tidal and lunar cycles. The more erratic weather and the increase in water temperature can alter the ability of these animals to reproduce. As they begin to die off, all of the sudden the variety of life that depends on coral reefs as a habitat are now also adversely impacted.

There are many more examples that demonstrate how the Earth has evolved in a balance. Something as seemingly insignificant as an increase in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere can have long-lasting impacts on the planet.

Our actions do impact the environment. The solutions are certainly not as simple as some environmental lobbyists might suggest. But it is important that we start changing our lifestyles to be more aware of how our actions adversely impact the environment. We can all be better stewards of the Earth.

What small things can you do to help be more environmentally friendly?

This was where I took my morning coffee – often times there would be animals there too.

I have found my happy place! It is at the Okonjima Nature Reserve in Namibia. This is where I spent six nights of my honeymoon. Now you might be wondering who opts for a honeymoon in Namibia and what this has to do with a science blog. Well, the Okonjima Nature Reserve happens to be home to the Africat Foundation, a not for profit organisation committed to the conservation of Namibia’s large carnivores.

Science lovers, animal lovers, and travellers of all kinds NEED to travel here at some point in their lives. First off, the accommodations are top-notch (just check out the Tripadvisor reviews). The staff have to be some of the most helpful and friendly people I have ever met (and I am Canadian; we are proud of our long-standing, widely accepted stereotype as a friendly and helpful culture.) Now, Husband and I were there for 6 nights during our entire time in Namibia. Apparently this is super rare. Most visitors only stay a couple of nights, which is NOT what I would advise. Yes, all of Namibia is beautiful and there is plenty to see, but you are doing yourself a disservice not to spend several days at Okonjima. You have the opportunity to go out tracking the large predators on the reserve, and while the guides (who are just tremendous) will do their absolute best to ensure that you see a leopard (or cheetah, hyaena, or wild dog) there is no guarantee.

But when you see one, they will take your breath away.

Anyone who has ever owned a cat will understand how uncooperative they can be. The more time you spend there, the more chances you have to see a leopard. It was a pleasure to accompany our designated guide, Richard Zaayman. He worked tirelessly with the rest of the staff to give us the most unforgettable honeymoon. But what his work really did was create two lifelong supporters of Africat.

Conservation: we, as a species, should perhaps see ourselves more as guardians and stewards of the Earth, rather than those exalted and meant to take from the Earth to serve our own needs. As an Albertan working in the environmental field (an environmental chemist specifically), much of my focus is on pollution and the impact that oil mining has on our environment and our health. But we are part of an ecosystem. Other creatures are depending on the environment. We have heard that wolves change rivers, and no doubt so do the cheetahs, leopards, and lions of Namibia. What I love about Africat, and how I know that I found a group of kindred spirits, is that their motto is “conservation through education”. By focusing on educating the next generation on the importance of conservation and why Namibia’s large carnivores play an important role in the ecosystem it is hoped that a sustainable solution for the future can be made. The concept of education and curiosity is why I write this blog. By giving everyone the opportunity to explore science, making it accessible to all, hopefully we can give the next generation the opportunity to explore the mysteries and wonders of nature, whether they are exploring the spaces between atoms, the spaces between continents, or the spaces between planets.

“Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” -Nelson Mandela

Thank you Richard, everyone at Okonjima and Africat for making our honeymoon so perfect!

Guess who turns 30 this year? (No not me, that was last year.) It is the Royal Tyrrell Museum. (Pronounced TEER-uhl not tie-RELL) Now, 30 years old might not sound that impressive when you are showcasing exhibits that can boast 30 MILLION years old but none-the-less, still a pretty big deal.

The Royal Tyrrell Museum is nestled down in Alberta’s badlands, in the lovely City of Drumheller. You go from the beautiful canola covered prairies and end up in the desert, where a very different geological landscape awaits you. What makes the Royal Tyrrell Museum one of Canada’s treasures is that it is THE Dinosaur Museum. And who doesn’t love dinosaurs? Seriously, to say you don’t love dinosaurs, weren’t completely fascinated by them as a kid, don’t have a kid that isn’t fascinated by them, and don’t find them remotely interesting now, you are either lying or have no sense of whimsy. Dinosaurs are awesome-that is why Jurassic World it all its terrible-ness still made money hand over fist: dinosaurs are awesome.

And on the other side is a lush prairie field.

For me (and my fiancé), going to the Royal Tyrrell Museum is like being a kid in a proverbial, allbeit science-themed, candy store. Exploring the world, not as we know it, but starting from over 570 million years ago in the precambrian period. What other place can you go where you can you travel in time, going from the Permian, to the Triassic, round a corner, end up in the Jurassic period, walk a little further on and hit the Cretaceous period, see a mass extinction event (one that wasn’t influenced by human activity nor threatens your current safety) and live to see the Rise of the Mammals?

Dimetrodons from the Permian period.

Stegasaurous (my personal favourite) from the Jurassic period.

Triceratops from the Cretaceous period.

Just another thing that makes Alberta a pretty special place to live is the fact that it seems the land in which we now call Alberta was once a hot bed (now fossil bed) for dinosaurs. This shouldn’t be a huge surprise, considering that our economy is oil-based. Petroleum hydrocarbons are what happens to plants and animals millions of years and thousands of tonnes of pressure after they die. What is surprising to me is that we are able to find so many dinosaur fossils at all. What we dig out of the ground are not animals that existed 10s to 100s of millions of years ago themselves, but rather pieces of those animals (and plants) that just happened to die under just the right conditions where their decay wasn’t stunted and they were then turned to stone. This becomes even more remarkable when we are able to find evidence of soft tissues.

So let’s take a look at how to make a fossil:

The first thing that has to happen is that the animal has to die. Now when you die, there are lots of things that happen. There are always scavengers that are looking for a quick meal. There are also bacteria that start breaking down all of the organic matter through a bunch of biochemical reactions. Then there is the environment: wind, rain, fire, it can all affect the body of a decaying organism. But I haven’t told you anything that you didn’t already know: animals die, their bodies decay. That process doesn’t necessarily lead to fossilisation. To make a fossil, the carcass needs to be buried, and pretty quickly, before too many things have eaten it or capricious weather has destroyed the remains. Now, the speed at which an animal needs to be buried depends on environmental factors such as humidity and temperature. The key is for the animal to be buried before too much of the carcass, specifically bone, is destroyed by the natural degradation processes.

The skeleton known as “Black Beauty” at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. The bones of this T-rex are a striking black. This is due to manganese being incorporated into the skeleton during fossilisation.

Now that we have buried the carcass, the bacteria, naturally present, get to work. Animal bones are not inert, hard structures that our bodies hang off of. Bones are a matrix of living organic tissue where the mineral hydroxyapatite has been grafted up around it. Hydroxyapatite is a mineral comprised of calcium and phosphate ions. Over time and under pressure, the hydroxyapatite can change, incorporating ions from the surrounding sediment, such as iron, uranium, even (rarely) manganese. The biggest change, however, comes from the bacteria “eating” the organic part of the bone. As these bacteria metabolise the organic material from the bone, the produce mineral by products, depositing these minerals into the spaces of the bones previously occupied by the organic matter. The most common mineral deposited is calcium carbonate. The bacteria use calcium ions from the surrounding water and sediment to capture the carbon dioxide that is produced as waste product of their metabolism. Calcium carbonate is better known as limestone. The bacteria may also incorporate other ions, like iron, into these mineral deposits. After many years, the bacteria will have successfully transformed bone into stone.

When I think about this process, how an animal has to die, be buried quick enough and deep enough that degradation processes don’t completely destroy the skeleton, I can help but be amazed that we even have fossils, let alone the stunning array of fossils that we do have. We have managed to piece together some pretty amazing details about the life on earth millions of years ago. This has allowed us to take a glimpse into our own evolution. This is what the science of palaeontology gives us: a passport into the past, a pastport if you will. So if you have ever wanted to travel back in time, I encourage you to visit the Royal Tyrrell Museum.

I think we need to talk about an important component in the sciences, one that gets a terrible reputation, is often scorned, and legions of people claim hatred of or ineptitude at: it is math. Poor math. But you know what? Math is actually pretty cool and there are so many different aspects of it. There is something for everyone.

Let’s start with this article where it seems that Canadian students are no longer leading the way in math. Alberta, where I live, used to be the country’s leader and is now struggling to perform. This breaks my heart. Math is so critical. I don’t really understand this “discovery based learning” of math. Don’t get me wrong, I am a big fan of making sure that people understand there is more than one way to skin some sort of animal and that there are limits to what rote memorisation can get you. However, there are certain things that do need to be committed to memory because they will form the basics tools for more complex learning later on: notes on a scale — you cannot memorise every possible combination, but you do need to know what is in an octive to play music; words in a language — again, you cannot memorise every sentence you will ever need, but you will need to memorise the various words that make up your vocabulary; the alphabet and the sounds the letter make — imagine trying to learn to read if you can’t remember what sound the letter “t” makes? I equate that memorising multiplication tables is the same. By knowing that 3×9=27 it is much easier to solve 99 x 3. (99×3=297)

Here’s the thing: math is critical to life. Okay, so you may never have to solve the Schrödinger equation for the hydrogen atom, but I bet you will have to figure out a budget. Whether it is a household budget or the billion dollar budget of a province, it is kind of important to make sure that your math is correct.

How about this: my mother is one of the greatest math whizzes I have ever met. Does she use her prodigious skill in putting together new designs for military jets at an engineering firm? Not so much — instead she uses those skills to further a hobby that keeps us all warm: she makes quilts. (She even made me one with a double helix on it in celebration of my PhD.) If you ever want to meet someone who can add quickly in only fractions, talk to a quilter. Each seam has to be 1/4 of an inch. You are making four squares made two 4″ right angle triangles. How much fabric to you need? My mother probably wouldn’t ever consider herself to be on the level of John Nash, but I have watched her add up everything she needs for these patterns in such a quick fashion that even Euclid would have to take notice. I am happen to be a pretty deft hand at math, and I found it hard to follow her calculations, she’s that good.

Just an example of one quilt she made.

Quilt making is just one example of how you can use math in a very not boring way. Look at how pretty the geometric patterns of a quilt are. Here’s another way you might need to be good with math: baking or cooking. Ever need to double a recipe? Ever need to cut it in half? Ya, that is all math. Delicious math, but still math.

I will admit, despite being good with math, I did find math class a little dull. Probably because it lacks context. But put me in a chemistry class where I need to figure out the quantity of an analyte in a solution through a series of back calculations, I am hooked. It is so neat that knowing this concentration and that volume, this molecular mass and that dilution factor, I can tell you how much calcium was present in a water sample. That math never “feels” like math. It is seems so straightforward and easy; after all, it is just multiplication and division, set up using the same principles that I learned when memorising my multiplication tables in fourth grade.

That’s the thing about math: it is everywhere. It is hiding in your budgets, lurking in your kitchen, sneaking in your job, but it is always there, giving you a helping hand when you need it, making sure that life makes sense. Imagine getting on a plane without math. How safe would you feel if some of those calculations about lift and drag weren’t quite right? Or imagine getting surgery. The calculations that the anesthesiologist uses are very precise-ensuring that you remain unconscious but not dead. (That would be why they are paid A LOT of money.)

Math is your friend. You don’t need to be Stephen Hawking to enjoy the benefits of math. And I bet that most of you, in your own way, are pretty good at math. Let’s change the reputation math has and start giving it the credit it is do. From music to planetary movements, math is pretty cool.

Imagine yourself at dinner with some family friends. Their 17 year old is going to be heading off to university next year and so you ask “Jamie, what is it that you are planning to do?” Jamie replies, “I’m going to be a physicist! But, like, not just any physicist, I want to get a PhD and work for, like, NASA or something. I want to be Canada’s Neil Degrasse Tyson!”

You’re not surprised; this kid has always loved science. Heck, when Jamie turned 7 your gift was a model of the solar system. Which was followed by a lecture on its inaccuracies: Pluto is NOT a planet.

What advice are you thinking about offering Jamie, knowing that these specific career goals mean at least a decade in university?

-How about the fact that this may interfere with plans to have a baby? No one wants to start having kids in their 30s.

-A technical diploma will allow for way more family focused jobs

-What about *future* husband’s career goals?

How many of you actually imagined that Jamie was a boy?

On Friday, Shrinivas Kulkarni of Caltech said in an interview on NPR “many scientists, I think, secretly are what I call ‘boys with toys'” and it has since sparked a backlash on Twitter with the hashtag #GirlswithToys. It has some people wondering, “what are people so outraged”?

Well here’s the reason: that statement automatically excluded 50% of the population from being identified as scientists, a group that already is discourage from science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. In one statement, Dr. Kulkarni managed to highlight the tacit institutional sexism present in the sciences (like so many other fields).

You would be hard pressed to find anyone, with the exception of cretins who identify as “Men’s Rights Activists”, who would openly say “women cannot be scientists” and yet, women earn as few as 20% of the the bachelor of science degrees awarded to men in physics, engineering, and computer science.

On April 29th, (that’s April 29th, 2015) female researchers were told that their paper would be improved if it had a male co-author. I can assure you that none of my male colleagues have ever been told their paper would fair better with a female co-author.

My male colleagues haven’t been asked about “when they are planning to have children” in job interviews, despite being married (some already committed fathers). My male colleagues haven’t had TAs who didn’t want to to female students. (Sadly this was a situation that arose, in 2009, in Canada.) When my male colleagues mention that their PhD is in chemistry, I have yet to see the kind of shocked faces followed by the condescending, “oh you have a real PhD,” as though somehow getting a PhD in a physical science is harder or more legitimate than one in a social science. I have never heard anyone refer to my male colleagues as a “bitch” because the same kind of tough questions that the male professors do. And they certainly haven’t had to deal with the rampant sexual harassment. Let me tell you, when you are at a conference poster session and one of your professors begins to tell, in graphic detail, of how attractive he thinks a well-known undergraduate student is and what he is planning to do alone in his hotel with her image, it makes your skin crawl to know that even if you said something about this, the guy has tenure and so nothing will happen. Hell, let’s not even discuss some of the things the more senior fellows in the department have said.

Did Dr. Kulkarni mean that women can’t be scientists by his off-hand remark? Probably not. I like to think that he was commenting on the child-like curiosity that many scientists have, and that the general enthusiasm with which curiosity-driven research is carried out feels a little like “getting to play with some pretty cool toys”. However, when you take that sentiment in context with the stories of institutional sexism that I, and every female scientist, has experienced in some way, it becomes easy to see why we are reacting with outrage.

I happen to work with a lot of women that I would very much refer to as “girls with toys” because we are driven to innovative research projects that often start with a curious question and the knowledge that we have plenty of high end instrumentation to test out ideas. We are committed to innovating our field-and if you had the kind of instruments we have, you’d want to be testing for all kinds of things like we do.

Does it matter that we are women? Not at all. Science is for everyone with a curious mind. Dorothy Parker wrote: “The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity.” And that has NOTHING to do with gender.

Gel featuring DNA bands from three individuals compared to an unknown sample.

Today in Kingston, ON, a man was arrested in connection with a kidnapping and sexual assault that took place in Calgary, AB, 20 years ago. The police were able to connect the suspect to the case by comparing his DNA to samples from the Calgary cold case.

I was asked to talk with the CTV reporter covering the story to explain DNA fingerprinting. RCMP forensics scientists-the real experts who made this type of arrest possible, aren’t available on Sundays. But if you happen to be a scientist and the sister of said reporter, you tend to be more available on Sundays.

One of the big questions from today’s interview was “how does this technology work?” Now, in the interview, my answer was pretty quick, because there wasn’t too much time to really explore the details-the story wasn’t about the science, or at least not ALL about the science. So here is a chance to go into a bit more detail.

The first thing to understand about DNA fingerprinting (the preferred term is actually genetic profiling) is that all of a person’s DNA (called the “whole genome“) is NOT sequenced. Only pieces of the DNA are sequenced. Your DNA contains TERABYTES of data. (The MacBook pro that I am writing this on has only 500 gigabytes of storage-it wouldn’t even hold the information that your DNA holds.) It would take a very long time to sift through the data from a whole genome, especially since 99.9% of our DNA is the same as everyone else. And thanks to evolution, we have a whole lot of junk DNA that we just kept with us as we climbed the evolutionary ladder.

What scientists use instead to build a DNA “fingerprint” are genetic markers called short tandem repeats (STR). These are areas of your DNA that present in every human, but are highly variable (polymorphic), meaning that they differ from person to person. There are typically 13 STR loci that forensic scientists use to create a genetic profile.

Simple overview of steps in DNA profiling.

Steps:

1) DNA sample is collected: could be blood, hair, saliva

2) The DNA is then broken up into smaller pieces, using an enzyme that cleaves DNA at specific locations

3) The DNA markers are amplified by a technique called PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction). This means that the original DNA sample can be quite small-maybe only 20 DNA containing cells.

4) The DNA pieces are then run through a technique called gel electrophoresis, where a high voltage current is applied to a gel that contains the DNA fragments. The fragments separate out based on size, with the smaller fragments travelling faster. The result is the band-like structure seen in the picture at the top.

The bands on a gel from the unknown sample will be compared to suspects (in the case of criminal DNA testing). If the unknown DNA is a match for a suspect, the bands on the unknown sample will exactly match. Take a look at the samples in the picture at the top. Can you identify which suspect is a match for the sample from the crime scene? (Answer at the bottom.)

Each of these STRs are independent, meaning that a particular sequence of one does not influence the other. In probability terms this means that each of these is an independent event. The result is a one in several trillion chance of two sequences from two individuals being identical. The notable exception being identical twins, who by definition have the same DNA.

Me, talking to CTV.

What has changed since 1995?

Well, the techniques are better, we can use smaller samples of DNA. We can even now put together samples from degraded ancient DNA. We can’t quite use those samples to clone a velociraptor (a la Jurassic Park); however, we can use the sample to identify remains of those long dead. Analysis of mitochondrial DNA was how the remains of Richard III were unequivocally identified in 2013.

Better, faster, more sensitive techniques allow for identification that may not have been possible in 1995. Further, PCR was developed in 1991, meaning that 20 years ago, it was still relatively new. Today we are much more comfortable with DNA analysis, as is the legal system.

I think it has been pretty clear that I have not been writing as much for Curiosity Science as I would like, even though there is so much to share in the world of science. That has to do with my new adventure: an actual paying job! I am working for Paracel Laboratories as the new business development person for the lab starting in Calgary. What is particularly awesome is that this is also a joint venture with Life Science Forensics. This has given me the opportunity to learn in a new field and also I will be writing for Life Science Forensics blog. It is a great opportunity, but all of this has me spread pretty thin and lacking the inspiration to move forward.

Me and the boy, getting ready for date night.

Luckily I have a great partner. He’s that handsome one on the right. He knew it was time for us to go out and have a date night. It was a Thursday. Where does he plan to take a scientist who is getting burned out, lacking balance, and getting low in inspiration? He takes her to the Telus Spark Adults Only Night!

Adults Only Night! I am so excited.

This has to be one of the best dates that we had, and we have had some pretty great dates. (And yes, I am wearing molecule earrings. I try to dress on point.) I have always loved going to Telus Spark (or in Edmonton, the Telus World of Science) during regular hours, with all of the kids. My nephew has great fun there, and of course, Auntie will always take him, because, science. But this was BETTER! And not just because they were now selling booze (though, it is a charming perk) but you get to play in all of the exhibits without worry that some kid is going to cut in front of you and grub up what you are looking at. Sure, some rowdy adult might do that, but while people really give you the side-eye if you get annoyed with a six year who is wrecking your wind tunnel experiment with their mindless block stacking, they applaud you for pointing out the line to hold the snake. (I don’t really get mad at 6 year olds; I do point out lines. I like order.)

This time they had the Dinosaurs in Motion exhibit. Art + Science = Amazing! These are sculptures of dinosaurs that are also like big metal puppets. So you learn about the dinosaurs, you learn about how the sculpture was built, and also how to make them move.

Making a T-Rex move requires some decent force!

Ever paid homage to a pulley? The pulley is one of the basic, simple machines, reducing the force required to lift an object. It reminded me of first year physics, where we actually had to calculate the amount of force that pulley would reduce the movement of a load by. Why did none of those problems involve us moving a T-rex? Seriously, it might have actually been an interesting exercise if I had to do that calculation.

Me trying to make this guy move with the playstation controller. It isn’t going well.

I can tell you that I was not very good at moving the sculptures attached to playstation controller. Apparently moving passed the simple machine of the pulley was too challenging for me. This exhibit was so neat. I loved the art work. The artist that created these sculptures did a wonderful job. What really struck me with this though was that it was an artistic impression of physics, paleontology, and metallurgy. Science isn’t some esoteric field of study that can only be found in the recesses of dusty books; science is in every part of life, allowing us to create beautiful innovations. Whether it is moving dinosaurs or a new app for our smart phones, science can inspire. And the sheer number of adults queued up behind me just to try their hand at making this guy move, is a testament to just how fun expressions of art and science can be.

After playing with dinosaurs we explored the rest of the exhibits and found that there was a display of reptiles. Now, my partner LOVES snakes! (He may have been the adult that I had to point out the line up to.)

The boy and Steve.

Me and Steve.

So that is how we met this guy: his name is Steve and he is a rat snake. And if you can’t tell, the look on my partner’s face is his “quick, stick him your purse and make a run for it” look. Of course, we didn’t. It wouldn’t be right. But we did enjoy snuggling with Steve for a few minutes. Snakes are pretty cool.

This date was so fun. It was different and amazing. It reminded me of why I love science, why I love talking about science, and why it was important for me to start this project in the first place. I love what I am doing with Paracel and Life Science Forensics. I am just having a little trouble in finding that thing called balance. But luckily for me, Telus Spark had a whole display demonstrating balance in the Dinosaurs in Motion exhibit. Hopefully now I can find some.